For this week I watched a Netflix Original called The World’s Most Extraordinary Homes. It’s not usually something I would watch, but I gave it a try. Like a lot of other Netflix Originals I watch for my Blog Posts, I usually watch more than just the first episode. With this Original, I watched almost through the second episode, and there have been many houses featured so I honestly can’t remember them all. This show really would be something dad would watch, more than me or you honestly, since it has to do with building things.
So the show is hosted by two people, named Caroline and Piers. I think Piers is an actual architect or something, but his co-host, Caroline, isn’t. She is more relatable to us non-architects, while Piers speaks to the audience that has a real interest in the architecture of the featured homes. I’ve read some reviews that put down Caroline, but I didn’t mind her; I guess I related to her more than him, which I think you would find with yourself also if you ended up watching this show.
One of the homes that stuck out to me most was one on the “Forest” episode, which is episode 2. The architect and the homeowners didn’t want to upset the trees on the plot of land that they had chosen to build on, so they figured out where the trees were and built the house around it. I thought that was pretty neat but it confused me because I know trees have deep, widespread roots and I didn’t understand how they built around the roots of the surrounding trees. They explained that instead of the usual cement foundation dug into the ground, they mapped out the tree roots and drove long steel “fingers,” as Piers described, in between the roots and they served as the foundation for the home. With this same house, the outside walls are literally inches away from the surrounding trees, which is just amazing to me that the builders were able to build so close to the trees without disturbing them.
Another home that was featured in the same episode was another odd-shaped house. It was built kind of like a tree house. This house is functional as a weekend home for the family that built it, but it won’t be very functional once they start to age. It features three bedrooms stacked on top of each other with the main family living area and kitchen on top of everything else. The living area and kitchen are wider than the stacked bedrooms, which is why it reminds me of a treehouse. I’m not sure if that made any sense, but I don’t know how else to explain it. It is a very tall house that allows its occupants to get a gorgeous view from the living area. The main feature of this house was the yellow staircase; it connected the three levels of bedrooms and the living area, which is why I say it won’t be a very functional home once the occupants start to age, as they may not be able to go up three levels of stairs to get to the living area and kitchen. It is definitely a pretty cool concept, though, since it isn’t taking up much space on the ground.
The show has four episodes jam-packed with houses from around the world- in the mountains, the forest, on the coast, and finally underground. I think you might enjoy the show if you end up watching it. It is pretty cool seeing houses that are nothing like what we have here in northeast Missouri.
Thank you for reading my post for this week grandma! Leave a comment below and let me know what you think!
Well Morgan, as it just so happens I watched this Netflix series myself. As with you I self determined that Piers is the architect and I’m thinking Caroline is an interior decorator. Personally I like her. She’s always into the color schemes, lighting and functionality of the rooms. I too thought your dad would like this show as he is a builder himself ! Anyway Morgan, you wrote a very well written and informative blog. I enjoyed reading it. Can’t wait for your next one... if you have another one?
ReplyDeleteTutu (grandma)